Adobe completed its acquisition of Semrush Holdings on 28 April 2026, five months after announcing the all-cash deal on 19 November 2025. The deal valued Semrush at about $1.9 billion ($12 per share). It moves one of the most widely used SEO tools into Adobe's enterprise marketing stack, and that matters for agencies, freelancers and in-house teams who pay for a Semrush subscription.
Key takeaways
- Adobe completed its acquisition of Semrush on 28 April 2026, in an all-cash deal worth about $1.9 billion at $12 per share.
- Semrush says there are no changes to existing contracts, features, access or billing at this time.
- Check your Semrush renewal date, export the project data you rely on and record Adobe as the new parent company.
- Adobe Brand Visibility, launched on 17 June 2026, tracks how a brand appears in ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Microsoft Copilot and Perplexity.
What happened
Adobe first announced the deal on 19 November 2025. It offered $12.00 per share in cash, which Adobe put at a total equity value of approximately $1.9 billion, and said it expected to close in the first half of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and a Semrush shareholder vote. Semrush's founders and other stockholders holding more than 75% of the voting power had already committed to vote in favour.
Adobe confirmed completion in a press release dated 28 April 2026. Semrush now describes itself as "an Adobe company" and sits inside Adobe's CX Enterprise portfolio, alongside Adobe Experience Manager, Adobe Analytics, Adobe Commerce, Adobe Experience Platform, Adobe Brand Concierge and Adobe LLM Optimizer.
Adobe's stated reason for the deal is generative engine optimisation (GEO), meaning how brands show up in AI assistants and AI search as well as in traditional results. When the deal was announced, Anil Chakravarthy, then president of Adobe's Digital Experience Business, said: "With Semrush, we're unlocking GEO for marketers as a new growth channel alongside their SEO."
Key dates
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 19 November 2025 | Adobe announces agreement to acquire Semrush for $12 per share |
| 28 April 2026 | Adobe announces the acquisition is complete |
| 17 June 2026 | Adobe launches Adobe Brand Visibility, combining Adobe LLM Optimizer with Semrush's AI Optimization |
The first product to come out of the merger is Adobe Brand Visibility, announced on 17 June 2026. Adobe says it tracks how a brand appears in ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Microsoft Copilot and Perplexity, and recommends content changes. It can be used on its own or as an integration with Adobe Experience Manager. Adobe has not published pricing for it in that announcement.
What changes for existing Semrush customers
Not much, so far. Semrush's customer FAQ, published on completion day, says: "At this time, there will be no changes to our existing contracts and agreements." Features, the interface, access and billing all continue as before, and customers keep their existing points of contact. The FAQ calls this "only day one" and promises further updates as the two companies integrate.
On data, Semrush says it will join Adobe's Data Protection and Integrity programme. Adobe's release says customers "of all sizes" can expect continued investment and an expanded product roadmap. Neither company has said publicly whether Semrush will stay a separately sold product in the long term, and neither has announced UK-specific pricing changes linked to the acquisition.
What this means for businesses and agencies
For most small businesses and agencies, nothing changes this month. Logins, projects and reports still work as they did before. The longer-term questions are about direction:
- Enterprise focus. Adobe's announcements are aimed at large brands, with CX Enterprise, Experience Manager and agentic commerce at the centre. Adobe does say it wants to serve "small businesses to global enterprises", but the integration roadmap so far is enterprise-led.
- AI visibility as a product line. Expect more of Semrush's development effort to go into AI search tracking. That could be useful, but it is a newer and less settled measurement area than rankings and backlinks. We cover this in more detail in our guide to AI search visibility tools.
- Procurement and data. If your organisation has supplier or data-processing reviews, the change of parent company may need recording under UK or EU GDPR, or under the privacy rules that apply where you operate. That is especially likely if you hold a contract with Semrush that names a data processor.
- Agency dependency. An SEO agency that relies on one platform for client reporting should treat any acquisition as a reason to review contract terms and renewal dates. That is ordinary supplier housekeeping, not a reason to panic.
None of this is a reason to switch tools. The sensible move is to watch for announcements before your next renewal.
What to do now
- Check your renewal date and terms. Find out when your Semrush plan renews and whether it is monthly or annual, so a future pricing change does not catch you out.
- Export what you rely on. Keep regular exports of key project data, such as tracked keywords, site audit history and backlink lists, in a format you control.
- Update your supplier records. Note Adobe as the new parent company in any vendor register or data-processing record.
- Separate the jobs your tools do. Rank tracking, backlink data and keyword research are different jobs from technical health checks, and some of them have free options, such as checking backlinks in Google and Bing's own tools. For the technical side (speed, Core Web Vitals, on-page tags, DNS, email authentication and security headers), you can run a free website audit with MakeItFlow alongside whatever keyword platform you use.
- Brief clients if you are an agency. A short note saying "nothing changes yet, and we are monitoring it" avoids awkward questions later. If you deliver white-label audits, see our guide to website audits for agencies.
Frequently asked questions
Has the Adobe Semrush acquisition been completed?
Yes. Adobe announced completion on 28 April 2026. The deal was first announced on 19 November 2025 at $12 per share in cash, about $1.9 billion in total equity value.
Will my Semrush subscription price change?
Semrush's FAQ says there are no changes to existing contracts and agreements "at this time". No price change linked to the acquisition has been announced. Check Semrush's pricing page and your account before renewing, as plan line-ups can change independently of the deal.
Do I need an enterprise tool to track AI search visibility?
Not necessarily. Most small businesses get more from getting the basics right first: a fast site, crawlable pages, accurate titles and structured data. Our SEO audit checklist covers that groundwork. MakeItFlow checks the technical side in one scan, and paid plans add scheduled monitoring and history.
Related reading
- AI for Marketing Agencies: Reporting, Briefs, QA and Client Comms Done Right: AI for marketing agencies in the UK: faster reporting, sharper briefs, campaign QA and client updates, plus what ASA rules, copyright and contracts mean.
Sources
- Adobe to Acquire Semrush (Adobe newsroom, 19 November 2025)
- Adobe Completes Semrush Acquisition (Adobe newsroom, 28 April 2026)
- FAQ for Customers: Adobe Acquires Semrush (Semrush newsroom)
- Introducing Adobe Brand Visibility (Adobe newsroom, 17 June 2026)
- Adobe Completes Acquisition of Semrush (Pulse 2.0)
Written by the MakeItFlow team
We build the website audit these guides are based on. Every fact is checked against the primary sources listed above and this guide was last reviewed on 31 October 2026 . How we research and check
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